Chapter 22
EMERY
Knox’s eyes go wide, and he shifts uncomfortably from side-to-side. Maybe this is a bad idea.
“I didn’t ask before because it didn’t feel like something I needed to know, but now…well, it still isn’t any of my business, but I keep hearing things from other people, and I wanted to give you a chance to tell your side of the story.”
“Other people?” he asks, innocently, but I know better than that. Knox might feel like he’s good at hiding his reaction to the whispers and snide comments, but I notice the way his shoulders stiffen every time he tries convincing himself it’s nothing.
“I ran into a man at Marie’s coffee shop the other day, and it was the woman’s husband who you had an affair with.”
Knox goes rigid as his lips sink into a deep frown. “Charlie.”
“I didn’t catch his name, but yeah, it was him.”
“I’m sorry, Bambi,” he sighs, slumping onto one of the barstools sitting near his workbench. “I didn’t mean to drag you into this mess. I figured you could handle the gossip, but I never expected you’d have to deal with Charlie.”
“It’s fine,” I reassure him, leaning against one of his tables. “Don’t get me wrong, it was uncomfortable as hell, but I’m not blaming you. I just want to clear the air and hear about what happened from you.”
He nods as his stare goes blank. His shoulders hunch forward and his jaw clenches together tightly. At first, I don’t think he’s going to say anything. I’m about to tell him it’s okay and we can talk another time, but then he opens his mouth.
“June was my teacher in high school. She was always the hot young one that all the guys in my grade fantasized about. And I did too. I even tried to flirt with her a few times, but she always shut me down. Then last year, I ran into her at a brewery a few miles outside town. Emma, Henry, and I used to go there for trivia all the time.”
“I was polite at first and made friendly conversation. I even offered to buy her a drink, and she accepted. She seemed upset, so I wanted to cheer her up, and after a while, she was laughing at everything I said. She even started to nudge my shoulder and touch my thigh. Eventually, I got up the courage to ask her about her husband, and that’s when she broke down.
She said she and her husband were separated and complained about how he didn’t appreciate her. ”
Knox pauses, taking in a deep breath and dragging a hand through his hair.
“At that point, I was getting excited. I figured it was my shot at sleeping with the hot teacher everyone wanted. Looking back, I should’ve walked away.
Hell, I should’ve asked more questions. I knew better, too, but then she leaned into me and—” He exhales hard, closing his eyes. “I went for it.”
He won’t meet my eyes, and his fingers are twisted into endless knots on his lap. I want to reach out and offer a supportive hand, but I remain still.
“It only happened once,” he admits, his voice low.
“After we hooked up in my truck, it felt wrong. I stupidly gave her my number, but then she wouldn’t stop calling and texting me.
I tried to ghost her like a fucking coward, but her husband must’ve gone through her phone and seen my name.
A few weeks later, he came into the shop to confront me and even got a punch in. ”
“Between yelling and screaming, I learned that she lied to me about being separated. June told me that they were practically ready to sign the papers. But the way he came at me—well, it was clear that he didn’t feel the same way.
I was the idiot who fed into the lie because I wanted to.
” Knox bites his lip and stares coldly at the floor.
“I should’ve told him the truth, but I could see the hurt in his eyes.
Part of me figured keeping my mouth shut was the quickest way to make it disappear.
Except that Charlie’s outburst in Sal’s might as well have made the front page of the paper.
Rumors spread quickly, and people filled in the blanks where they wanted. ”
“Not long after that, June split town and never looked back. I was blamed for breaking up a perfectly happy marriage, and no one ever looked at me the same. Now I’m the kid who couldn’t keep it in his pants.”
Silence fills the space between us. Knox’s head tips forward like he’s bracing himself for me to pass the same judgment on him.
“Emery, I know what you must think of me,” he whispers.
“But I need you to know I’m not someone who condones cheating.
I’ll let the rest of this town think whatever the hell they want, but your opinion is the only one that matters.
I should’ve told you sooner, but then you told me about Patrick and I—I didn’t want to bring it up. I guess I am still a coward.”
I bite the inside of my cheek and attempt to look anywhere but his face.
Is it possible to feel pain telepathically?
Because if it is, I am sure I can feel the suffering radiating off him.
But I don’t ignore the sharp reminder of what it feels like to be Charlie.
I was on the other side, and it does make me pause.
My fingers tug on the hem of my T-shirt, twisting the fabric around my thumbs. “I know what it feels like to be him,” I say, my voice low. “And that’s not something you easily forget.”
His head slowly rises, but I don’t look at him. “But,” I begin, softening my voice, “I also understand what it feels like to have people think the worst about you before asking for the truth. Do you remember why I was in Honey Grove all those summers ago?”
Knox blinks but slowly nods, registering my question. “I remember everything about that summer.”
His voice slinks around me like soft velvet, but I keep my chin held high.
“Right. Then you remember how hard it was for me. My parents never asked me why I vandalized the school; they assumed I was a bad kid who needed to be sent away. They never asked me why I did it or how I was feeling.” My throat constricts.
“They made their minds up about me, and there was nothing I could do to change it. And even though I’ve stopped trying, it doesn’t make it hurt any less. ”
Knox’s eyes are glued to mine as he keeps his mouth closed. He just waits, letting me know he’s taking in every word.
“So yes, I know what it’s like to be Charlie. But I also know what it’s like to be you.”
His chest rises and falls. I see the tiniest ripple of his jaw like he’s trying to find the words to say. “Thank you,” he nods, cracking a smile. “Now I feel like an idiot for not telling you sooner.”
“You had your reasons,” I sigh, wrapping my arms around my body. “I was also too afraid to ask.”
Knox chews on his bottom lip and takes a step closer.
My pulse hums to life. “I can’t believe you passed up a perfectly good opportunity to call me an idiot,” he says, reaching out.
I forget to breathe as he runs his rough thumb over the bottom of my lip.
“I think you like me more than you’re willing to admit. ”
He’s right. I’m not willing to admit it out loud yet, and I don’t know if I’ll ever be. So, I shake my head and cover up the drum line in my chest with an amused giggle. “I must be getting rusty because, in fact, I do still think you’re an idiot. Correction—I know you are.”
I peer up at him and everything in the room blurs around us. It always feels like this when he’s inches away, and I hate that I crave it as much as I do.
“What’s it going to take for me to knock down those walls of steel, Bambi?” he says, letting his thumb trail down the side of my neck and across my collarbone. Chills dance across my skin, blossoming into ripe goosebumps.
I close my eyes and try to find my words. “If I told you then I’d have to k—kill you,” I say, struggling to get the words out as his fingers graze the swell of my left breast.
“Oh, Bambi,” he sighs, leaning into my ear like he always does. I melt into the feel of his warm touch. “Don’t worry, I’ll find out. Until then, we can still have some fun. Right?”
And then he places a hard kiss at the base of my neck, and I know I’m a goner. My eyes snap open, and I’m met with an intense smirk that makes me want to beat my hormones into submission.
I should probably be fixating on his promise, but it’s hard to focus when his hands are squeezing my hips with this much force.
I’m so swept up in him that I don’t even notice his body slowly inching mine toward the hard, cold surface of his car.
I barely flinch when I hear the loud click of his car hood closing.
The surface of the car is cold against my bare thighs as Knox lifts me onto the hood. “What are you doing?” I ask, cringing at the thought of my ass leaving a sizable dent in his “baby.”
“First, I’m going to make you come with my mouth,” he explains, gripping the inside of both of my thighs and yanking them apart. “And then I’m going to make you come with my dick.”
“I—I mean, what about your car. I—” I’m cut off when he grabs the nape of my neck and shoves our mouths together. His lips devour mine, making me forget about—shit what was I worried about again?
When Knox pulls back, his eyes are bright blue and dripping with hunger.
“Don’t worry about the car, sweetheart. I’ve wanted to bend you over this hood since the first day I saw these tiny black shorts,” he says, firmly gripping my waistband. “Is that a problem?”
I stare blankly at him until he nods, waiting for an answer. “Oh. Umm, no. No, there’s no problem,” I swallow, feeling a burst of want burn at my core.
“Good,” he whispers, attacking my neck with his lips. “Besides, you don’t really have a choice.”
I gasp again when he grabs my thighs and slides my ass to the very end of the car hood.
Within ten seconds, my shirt and bra fly across the garage, and my shorts are yanked off my body.
I’m almost naked, sitting on the black Mustang with Knox’s heated gaze on me.
I’ve never been more turned on in my life.